Local Research for Better Lives

You are here

ResearchGet InvolvedImpact

Digital Public Infrastructure

 

What is Digital Public Infrastructure?

Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) refers to the digitisation of systems and frameworks that enable the timely delivery of public services and functions, thereby reducing the need for physical human intervention. This includes digital identity, payment systems, data exchange frameworks, and other technologies that facilitate efficient, accessible, and transparent public services.

 

About the Programme

GDN’s newest programme, launched in 2024, the Socioeconomic Impact of Digital Public Infrastructure programme, in partnership with Co-Develop, aimed to utilise and enhance local research capacity by engaging researchers from Ethiopia, Bangladesh, and Benin. Guided by a Scientific Committee of global experts, the pilot programme implemented innovative research methods to evaluate the socioeconomic impacts of DPI. This programme aims to foster cross-country scientific exchange and build a robust evidence base for DPI interventions.

 
In June 2025, we hosted a day-long conference on the Economics of DPI in New Delhi to lay the foundation for policy-relevant, evidence-based research that can inform the scale-up of DPI globally. The event also marked the beginning of a sustained, Global South-led research agenda on the economics of DPI. 

 

Programme Objectives
 
This partnership aims to create a South-South and North-South community of researchers working on DPI and its developmental impacts, generating high-quality comparative evidence on DPI rollouts and use cases. The outcomes will feed up-to-date evidence into national and global debates on DPI, contributing to a larger global initiative set to launch shortly.

 

Findings from the Pilot
Check out the report to learn more about the socioeconomic impacts of DPI on Ethiopia, Bangladesh and Benin. 
 

 

For more information, write to dpi@gdn.int.